Promessa
by funkymoleperson
Summary: She trudged slowly through the snow, her pace lagging with each step, until she came upon a single rose that somehow flowered in the otherwise slumbering land, reminding her of a promise…unfulfilled. Oneshot.


**Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda.**

**Summary: She trudged slowly through the snow, her pace lagging with each step, until she came upon a single rose that somehow flowered in the otherwise slumbering land, reminding her of a promise…unfulfilled.**

_Promessa_

Zelda lay curled up upon her bed, shivering with the chill that blew in through her open window. She could see the snow falling outside. The wind, though not heavy, had caused the curtains to billow out and furl like twin crimson banners, the silk shining in the dull morning sunlight, stealing Zelda's gaze away from the world outside as someone began to pound on the hard oaken door.

"Zelda! It's time to be up, lass, it's long past noontide and you need to get some food in your stomach before the ceremony or you won't be able to last through!" Impa's voice called through the thick timbers. There was a long pause.

"Zelda?" Impa's voice queried. "Princess?"

The door creaked open and Zelda turned over so that she was fully facing the window and away from Impa, her eyes riveted on the curtains, the color of which reminded her of blood…so much blood…

Zelda did not move even as she heard the footsteps softly moving over and then stopping at the side of her bead, but she knew that the older woman was standing there watching her expectantly. She held back a sigh.

"I'll be down in a little while," she replied softly, fingering the hem of her faded green robe. For a long time she could feel Impa's gaze, and the moment stretched on for much longer than the princess could tell, but finally her nursemaid departed, closing the door shut gently behind her, leaving Zelda alone in the silence with her thoughts once more.

Though she knew she should get up, Zelda had no wish to join the court in their gathering. She felt little guilt but for the pain in her heart, yet still her body would no longer watch the world move. She must move with it. Putting on her slippers, the princess walked out into the hall, but left the castle through one of the kitchen doors, making her way across the frozen ground, the snow crunching beneath her feet.

The wind whistled its slow, mournful tune in time with the footfalls of the princess's weary march and the birds chirped a melancholy chorus. Now that Zelda had gotten this far and the snow had gotten deep already, she had no desire to continue her pilgrimage to the forest, but her legs continued to move beyond her thought. She trudged slowly through the snow, her pace lagging with each step, until she came upon a single rose that somehow flowered in the otherwise slumbering land.

Zelda bent over to pick the flower up, cutting her finger on one of the thorns in the process. The red droplet fell throw the air, landing on the snow and glistening ruby red for a second, but it was enough to bring the memory flooding back into the princess's mind, clear as the sound of bells chiming in the distance for the beginning of the ceremony in the front of the castle.

Warmth and color enveloped Zelda's senses and once again she was standing amongst the autumn leaves, watching Link shift his weight from one foot to the other, keeping his back turned towards her.

"I…don't know how to begin," he said slowly, arms trembling as he clutched at something in his hands. Zelda smiled at his uncertainty.

"Start wherever you think is best," she replied softly, and he laughed, but it was slightly strained. Zelda's forehead creased with slight worry. "Link…are you well?"

"No, Zelda, I am not well. There has been trouble in the north. I have been summoned there, and I do not think this is any small evil that rises," he murmured. Zelda gasped and stepped forward, reaching out to her friend, but he made a noise of protest, arresting her movement.

"Link…" she whispered, her voice wavering. He turned around swiftly, suddenly, to face her, some wavering emotion in his gaze. In his hands he clasped a single red rose. Zelda looked at it and then his face again. Link smiled sadly and stretched out his hand, placing the flower in hers.

"This time…" he said softly. "I do not wish to go, for there is now something that would keep me here."

Zelda looked down at the rose in her hands, and swallowed, her heart missing a beat. She did not dare to look up at the hero before her, but could feel his intense gaze upon her.

"It is _you_, Zelda," he said simply. "If you wish it, I will return once my quest has ended. If not, I will seek my fortune elsewhere, but now, at this time, I could no longer remain in silence. I must know whether you care for me as well."

Zelda laughed and looked up at Link, a tear sliding down one cheek. "I wish it! Oh, how I wish it…" He smiled, but then appeared confused, reaching out a hand to brush away the tear. Zelda shook her head.

"No, the tear was…I just thought you didn't…that you'd never l…l…" she stuttered, and Link suddenly caught her up in a warm embrace.

"Love you?" he whispered, and she nodded, more tears streaming down her cheeks. Oh, how she loved him too. Link pulled back slightly to look Zelda in the eyes.

"Then, once my quest had ended I shall return to you and we shall be together forever, beautiful princess," he said smiling, reaching out to tuck a loose piece of hair behind Zelda's ear. Time seemed to freeze as the two stood bare inches apart, with Link's hand cupping Zelda's cheek as they stared silently at each other.

Then he kissed her.

The vision shattered; the colors quickly draining away and the warmth lingering only for a moment, leaving Zelda crouching in the snow clutching a single withered red rose, weeping silently. She made no move to depart, only knelt in the cold, trying to recapture the warmth through her tears.

The sun was low in the sky when Zelda arrived at the place where the service had taken place earlier. It was now empty; as the court had moved on, leaving only one other, a short solitary woman Zelda knew to be Impa. As she approached, the older woman spotted her, but said not a word, stepping back so that the princess could approach the grave.

Zelda came to a halt in front of the stone and let the flower in her hand fall. She choked out a sob, and could no longer keep her tears silent, her whole body crying out in pain. "He promised me…he promised…!"

Impa smiled sadly and put her arms around the princess's shoulders. "He wanted to protect Hyrule, my lady, and you. I am sure he intended to return to your side if he could, but ensuring your people's safety and your own came first."

Zelda angrily lashed out her foot, kicking at the headstone. "But what about my feelings? How can…after all this time I'd been missing him because he'd been so distant, and then he said he l…loved me and then I was forced to miss him again as he marched off on another quest. Now I am forced to miss him forever!"

"Hush, child. If he had not fought, the evil would have covered the land. Many would have died had it not been for him," Impa replied and Zelda jerked out of her grasp.

"I don't care about everyone else! It was him I loved, and it was him I lost!" she screamed and turned on her heel, half running, half stumbling, away through the snow. Impa opened her mouth to call after the retreating princess, but her breath caught in her throat.

The rose that Zelda had left at Link's grave was slowly returning to life, streams of red flowing through and filling the petals once again as they uncurled, blooming one last time. At the base of the stone, one elegantly scripted word began to materialize…

_Forever_

Impa whirled, looking back towards the horizon where Zelda had reached the top of the hill. The elder woman watch as the princess collapsed, energy spent, as she fell back down to the snow. In the lightly falling snowflakes, Impa almost thought she could see someone appear beside the princess and bend down to embrace her, but the figure was gone so quickly that Impa dismissed it as a trick of her eyes, just like the rose lying withered by the gravestone. The nursemaid walked quietly over to the sleeping Zelda and gathered her up in her arms, carrying her back towards the castle.

_Fin._


End file.
